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The Allocation of Time and Remote Work

Author

Listed:
  • Christos A. Makridis

Abstract

Motivated by large structural shifts in the nature of work since 2020, this paper studies the allocation of time among workers across jobs that vary in their remote intensity. Drawing on the American Time Use Survey between 2018 and 2024, I document three main results. First, time allocated to leisure increased and to work decreased among more remote jobs with little change in home production, shopping, or childcare. These results are robust to alternative longitudinal data from the Gallup Workplace Panel between 2019 and 2025. Time allocated to commuting declined, but only accounts for a small portion of the declines in labor supply. Second, these changes were concentrated among males, singles, and those without children. Third, these declines in labor supply are not associated with productivity declines; sectors with greater remote work intensity exhibited greater productivity growth. I subsequently build and estimate an augmented Roy model, showing that sorting of more productive workers into higher productivity industries accounts for the increase in productivity growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Christos A. Makridis, 2025. "The Allocation of Time and Remote Work," CESifo Working Paper Series 12363, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12363
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • D23 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Organizational Behavior; Transaction Costs; Property Rights
    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • G18 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • M54 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Labor Management
    • R3 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location

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